


Rumors and Facts

by JustAndrea



Category: Batman - All Media Types, The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)
Genre: Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Misgendering, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-25
Updated: 2017-03-25
Packaged: 2018-10-10 08:22:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10433499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAndrea/pseuds/JustAndrea
Summary: Sometimes even the youngest of heroes have to deal with annoying and hurtful tabloids…





	

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is dedicated to thatlegobird on Tumblr, oboeist3 on Ao3 and tumblr, and anyone else who supports the trans!Lego Robin headcanon! It’s not my headcanon personally, but at the same time I wanted to give some support to those who do have it as a headcanon - especially since there’s been some issues with people harassing those who have it as a headcanon. That’s really not cool :/ So, to all of you out there who love and support the trans!Robin headcanon, I hope you enjoy this fic, and that you guys keep being awesome! ^v^

You wouldn’t think something as simple as a pleasant day would be possible in a city like Gotham - AKA The most crime-ridden city in the _world_ \- but believe it or not, they still happened. Sure, it was a bit cloudy outside, but at least there was no rain! 

And what was better than a rainless day? Well, how about spending part of your day grocery shopping with your butler-grandpa? 

Maybe it wasn’t as exciting as crime-fighting, but it was still one of Alfred’s chores that Dick enjoyed helping him out with. Not that the butler really needed any help with a task as simple as shopping - especially when most of the list was just lobster, popcorn and various cleaning supplies - but he still greatly enjoyed the company. 

While they would start off walking together at the start of their trips, Dick would usually end up hang off the front of the cart as Alfred shopped, enjoying the ‘ride’ as he glanced around at all the various products and occasionally waving at familiar Gotham citizens. The two of them occasionally having light conversations as they traveled throughout the store, and of course Alfred would always make sure to pick up a couple packages of cookies before heading to the checkout, much to the boy’s delight. 

Not wanting to crowd the people in front of them, Dick hopped off the cart and went to Alfred’s side. “Hmm, think we should pick up an extra snack for Padre while we’re here?” he asked, glancing over at all the candy near the register.

“While I’m sure he’d appreciate the gesture, but Master Bruce isn’t really much of a candy eater,” Alfred answered as he took his place in line, “and he should be satisfied with the snacks we’ve already picked up.”

“Ah, alright!” Dick nodded. With no further interest in the candy, he then turned his attention to the magazine rack, hoping to maybe find a comic or magazine that he could skim as they waited in line. After all, there were dozens of magazines - from local to nationally run, to sports, pop-culture, music (his personal favorite), tv and movies, fashion, politics, and really just about anything in between! And, of course, there were still the infamous-

Dick glanced up, and his image on the cover stared right back at him - a quick shot of him swinging across the page using his grappling hook. For a moment, he felt a pinch of thrill and excitement. He’d had a couple pictures in some of the newspapers before, but he had never been on the cover of a magazine! 

…And then he started reading the actual words next to his cover picture…

Even at a young age, Dick knew what tabloids were, as well as how obnoxious and untrue they could be at times. He could remember a particularly funny one that claimed Killer Croc was secretly an alien and was using sewer water to fuel his ufo. Another tabloid had insisted on calling Joker and Harley things like “a power couple” and “the King and Queen of Gotham Crime”, which had definitely gotten a good laugh out of the platonic partners-in-crime.

But this? Dick swallowed, squirming slightly as he continued to stare at the bold words. This wasn’t funny at all…

**“IS THE BOY WONDER ACTUALLY A _GIRL_ WONDER? A mask and a cape might not be Robin’s ONLY disguise! Read the latest rumors and claims here!”**

A disguise… Was that how he looked? Was that how some of the people in Gotham saw him? …Was what he was really that noticeable?

Dick squeezed his hands together as his body stayed rigid, trying not to get too worked up about it. Despite how hard it was, he really did try his hardest to look away from the cover, all while reminding himself over and over how wrong it was. 

No… It wasn’t noticeable. After all, his new family didn’t even learn he was trans until several weeks after he was adopted. And besides, even if it was noticeable, that didn’t matter, right? Even if it was, there was still no question about what he was. He knew he was a boy, and that was that! 

…Unfortunately, at the same time, he also knew that there were still people out there who could only see him as what he wasn’t - who could only see him as what _they_ thought he should be…

“…-ck? …Master Dick?”

“Huh?!” Dick flinched. He hadn’t even noticed the gentle hand being placed on his shoulder.

“Are you alright?” Alfred asked softly. Dick silently appreciated that he was looking at him and not his image on the magazine. 

“Y-yeah… I’m alright, Grandpa,” Dick replied as he forced a smile, “I’m okay… Oh, um, it looks like it’s our turn.” With that, he quickly went back up to the front of the cart and started putting various items on the checkout belt. As he did this, he made sure to take a couple deep breaths. He still made sure to keep a smile on, even if it didn’t quite reach his still watery eyes.

Of course, this didn’t go unnoticed. Scowling ever so slightly, Alfred reached over, grabbed a copy of the Daily Planet and placed it in front of the insensitive tabloid before walking ahead towards the cash register. 

Maybe it wasn’t much, but at least it was something…

()()()()()()()()()

“I’m tellin’ ya! Those guys in Metropolis really do have the right idea! Stories about superheroes sell like hotcakes! Heck, even just puttin’ them on the cover will earn ya at least a hundred more sales than putting a villain on the cover would!”

Taking just a moment to adjust the cellphone that was in between his ear and his shoulder, the so-called reporter continued to skim through the various hero-related forum posts online. To anyone else, they were just bored ramblings, random accusations and conspiracy theories. But to him, they were without a doubt the best source around! Maybe not totally reliable, but certainly profitable!

“Though I’m really not surprised,” the tabloid writer added, “Not only was our latest headliner about a super, but if you want my opinion, it was probably one of our more accurate stor-”

He paused, a slight chill running up his spine. …Had he heard something? But he was the only one left in the small building. Eh, probably just a bird or something outside. 

“Er, stories, yeah…” He quickly shook off his nerves as he switched from his browser window to a word doc. “Oh hey, speaking of stories, I should get back to writing my next one. Heh, I’m sure I’ll have even more to brag about to ya next time you call. Heh, alright, bye Hank.” 

Taking his phone away from his ear, he pressed the ‘end call’ button- and immediately gasped as he felt another, much bigger chill. Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure that he was alone anymore…

Trying not to let his nerves get the better of him, the reporter slowly and cautiously turned around. “Uh… H-Hello? Is… Is anybody-”

His chair was suddenly turned all the way around, and he could now fully see a pair of glowing-white eyes glaring at him from the dark. He let out a yelp and backed up, knocking his mouse off his desk in the process, but the figure just moved closer. Even in the dark, he could still tell who it was.

“Batman… I, I swear that I wasn’t gonna write a tabloid about you! Or your boyfr- er, b-billionaire roommate, I mean! I, uh-”

“Quiet.” The reporter gulped. Batman narrowed his eyes. “So… Tell me something, Dan,” he started to say - Dan flinched slightly, surprised that he knew his name (then again, this was Batman so, maybe it wasn’t too surprising) - “Rumors are pretty much just another form of questions, right?”

Dan blinked. “Uh, y-yeah, I guess. Er, I mean, definitely! Whatever you sa-!”

“Okay. Now that we’ve got that settled, I’ve got an answer for one of your latest ‘questions’,” Batman continued, moving even closer to the cowering tabloid writer, and even moving his grip from the armrest of the office chair to the man’s shoulder. 

“So listen good… My sidekick, Robin, is a boy. Not a girl, the _Boy Wonder_. One hundred percent, no further questions, no further discussion needed. _Got it?”_

“Y-Yes! Yes, Mister Batman, Sir!” Dan answered as he rapidly nodded his head, “I-In fact, I’ll make sure that GREAT answer is on the front page of our next issue! I promise!”

“…” Batman glared at him for just a moment more, wanting to make sure that he wasn’t lying. Once the Dark Knight was certain that he wasn’t, he muttered a “Good” and turned the reporter back around. As for Dan, he just sat there, still shaking as he wondered if what had just happened really happened. By the time he looked over his shoulder to check, the Bat was already gone. 

With nothing else to take care of that night, it didn’t take too long for Batman to make it back up to his manor. Even after getting into his usual and extremely comfy bathrobe though, he still couldn’t really relax. He didn’t have much of an appetite and he couldn’t really concentrate on any of his rom-coms or investigations either, so he just decided to call it a night and headed up towards his bedroom.

“Maybe just staring at the ceiling for a couple hours will help, even if does mostly just sound super boring, ugh,” he mumbled, “Or maybe I’ll actually go to sleep before 3am tonight…”

“…Dad?”

Batman froze. (Thankfully, the voice had been quiet enough that it didn’t cause him to break out any kicks or punches.) Glancing over his shoulder, he could see his son poking his head out his bedroom door and squinting at him.

“Oh… Hey, kid,” the hero answered as he faced him fully, “I uh, I didn’t think you were still up.” 

Dick shrugged. “I couldn’t really get to sleep,” he admitted as he put on his glasses, “And, um… I-I guess I was just wondering where you were. I didn’t see the Bat-Signal or anything, so…”

“Oh. Well, I just had an errand to run. You know, Batman errands. No big deal,” Batman insisted, trying his best to play it cool. Dick smiled at him, just a little - though it still didn’t last for very long, which caused Batman’s own frown to deepen. “…You okay?” he finally asked.

For several seconds, the boy didn’t answer. He just glanced away, giving a small sigh. Seeing that, Batman’s concern continued to grow as he walked over to him, wanting to be near him just in case Dick needed him. 

Eventually though, Dick did give an answer. “I’m fine. I’ll be alright. …But-” He bit his lip slightly. 

“But what?” Batman asked, raising an eyebrow.

“But… You, you don’t have to fight my battles for me,” Dick said, holding his arms close as he finally met his father’s gaze, “I, I’m glad that you want to but, I mean, compared to all the other stuff you do, it’s not really that impor-”

“Stop,” Batman said firmly, immediately getting his son’s attention, “I thought that you would know this by now, but I guess I can remind you: Batman is all about fighting for justice. _Any_ justice, even the ones that seem small.”

“…” Slowly, Dick smiled - and this time, it was completely genuine. “Heh, okay… Thanks Batdad.”

The Dark Knight nodded. “No problem. Like I said, it’s my job.” And even if it wasn’t, he still wasn’t about to let some sleazy tabloid hurt his son like this. After all, if Batman scare tactics hadn’t work on that writer, he was certain that Bruce Wayne could’ve easily bought out the magazine and just fire him on the spot. That’s what good dads did, right? Of course it was.  

“Heh, yeah, I know. …But, I really will be alright,” Dick insisted, his smile remaining even as he turned his gaze back to the floor. “I mean, it’s not as if this is the first time something like this has happened…” He had only been at the Gotham City Orphanage for a year or two, but there were still a couple of bad memories from it. “And, and I can’t lie and say that it doesn’t make me feel awful.” He clenched his fists slightly, and even scowled for a moment. “Because it does… It does hurt sometimes. It hurts a lot.”

Batman could feel his heart start to ache. “Dick…” However, before he could say anything more, Dick looked back up at him. There was still hurt in his eyes, but there was also determination - the same kind that Batman saw on him every time they were out on patrol chasing a bad guy or fighting an opponent that was much bigger than them. 

And just like, Batman’s sympathy turned into a new emotion, one that was becoming more and more familiar to him by the day: Pride.

“But… But I just have to keep reminding myself that it doesn’t matter what they say,” Dick continued, “Even when it hurts, it doesn’t matter. I know who I am, and others know it too.” And even as he started getting teary-eyed, his smile continued to grow, not faltering for even a second. “I’m trans. I’m a boy. I’m Robin - and there isn’t anything that anyone can say that can truly change that.”

“Yep,” Batman said simply, smiling back at him as he lightly ruffled the kid’s hair, “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

Dick giggled, quickly hugging his batdad - the best adoptive, supportive dads he could ask for - as tightly as he could. “Heh. …Love you, Padre.”

“Yeah, me too, mi hijo… Love you too.” And that (both the sentiment and the fact that Dick really was his son) was just one more thing that could never be changed - not even by all the nosy, insisting tabloids in the world.

**THE END**


End file.
